The long awaited election is over … and we have a new government. As the deAdder cartoon indicates perhaps it is best not to mess with veterans.

However …

Since 2010, I have spoken with numerous politicians, publicists, reporters, academics, and “average Canadians” with no military experience. Despite the lawsuits, activism, media commentaries, and books; the public has a poor understanding of veterans’ needs, VAC bureaucracy, and the diverse number of factors and players that affect veterans’ policies and programs. Personally, I find that worrying.

The lack of clarity on veterans’ issues is a result of many factors. In this post I will only mention three: our fractured and disjointed veteran “community”, politics, and civility.

The Veteran “Community” …

The veteran “community” has always been fractured and disjointed primarily because we veterans are victims of diverse and sometimes very personal experiences. I suspect the one thing we can all agree on is that our experiences are diverse. A WW II veteran undoubtedly considers their experience as unique – and they are right. A Korean War veteran faced even more diverse experiences. Peacekeepers faced such a variety of experiences that are almost impossible to encapsulate or group. There are veterans and civilians alike who do not accept that the Afghanistan War was actually a war. The point is, there are a variety of interests, experiences, and voices representing veterans: this is unlikely to change.

Enter the politics of the 2015 election …

Not since the 1920s have veterans played such a significant role in an election. Seeking to gain benefits, services and resect, some veterans openly supported one political party over another. In response, every significant political party in this election has attempted to use veterans to garner votes. The disparity of veteran political opinions became clear in October with one veteran organization referring to another as “cowards”. Politics is an animal unto itself that inflames passions and beliefs that may mask veterans’ issues. Temporizing political passions is not possible or even necessary. We live in a democracy where freedom of speech is paramount; however, an element of civility is important.

Speaking of civility …

The cumulative negative effect of our infighting and politics is a loss of focus on real concerns. To our community’s detriment most Canadians, and many veterans’, have no firm understanding of why some veterans are complaining/suing/arguing with politicians and bureaucrats while others are satisfied. Add politics, a lack of research, government misinformation, union self-interest, veterans’ organizations speaking for those who they do not represent, and a whole host of other factors and it is no wonder the media and public share confusion over our concerns.My point is this – given the general lack of knowledge about veterans, combined with our fractured and disjointed culture – a lack of civility makes us look childish. Moreover, it gives decision makers and the public the excuse to ignore our concerns and focus on the many other challenges this country faces.Agree or disagree with the new government, speaking publicly, writing op-eds, interacting with the media, commenting online, your interaction makes an impression on the public. We need all of the support we can get. Civility is a factor that we veterans can do something about. No need for the "F-Bombs" to be dropped.

Veteran Watch will be as critical of this new government as we were of the old. In fact, given the current legal state of affairs and the time that all parties have had to prepare, you can expect greater criticism; however, we will continue to do so with civility. Will you?